Former judge, Maine Public Utilities Commission panelist joins University of Maine School of Law

PORTLAND, Maine — Bangor native Vendean Vafiades has joined the University of Maine School of Law as director of advancement and external affairs, according to a law school press release issued Tuesday.

A former District Court judge, Vafiades, 62, of Augusta most recently served on the Maine Public Utilities Commission. Last week, the Senate confirmed Mark Vannoy of Waldoboro to complete her unexpired term through March 2013, according to a previously published report. Vafiades joined the commission in January 2007.

Vafiades said Tuesday she was excited about her new job. She said she would be doing development work for her alma mater, working to raise money for scholarships for students and the low-income clinic program, and promoting the law school.

“I’m excited because I have had the privilege of being a graduate from this institution,” she said in a telephone interview Tuesday. “The school provided me with an enormous amount of skills and background that allowed me to serve in a number of positions in Maine in the public and private sectors. I think it is a great resource for the state.”

Vafiades graduated from the law school in 1985. In addition to serving as a District Court judge, she was chief counsel to the University of Maine System, chief deputy attorney general for the state of Maine, attorney at Bernstein Shur Sawyer & Nelson in Portland, and executive director of the Maine Women’s Lobby. Among her volunteer activities, Vafiades was president of the Maine Bar Foundation and the Maine Civil Liberties Union, now the American Civil Liberties Union of Maine.

Vafiades received the L. Kinvin Wroth Distinguished Alumna Award from the University of Maine School of Law in 2009. She will manage the law school’s strategy to expand resources and to grow and strengthen institutional relationships, according to Peter Pitegoff, dean of the law school.

“Vendean brings a wide range of experience and deep skill to this position,” he said in the press release. “She has been a leader in the judiciary, the legal profession, and the public arena, consistently demonstrating excellence and commitment to service.”